Tag: law

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The listen promise.

Reading Time: 4 minutes

The Lord your God will soon bring you into the land he swore to give you when he made a vow to your ancestors Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. It is a land with large, prosperous cities that you did not build. The houses will be richly stocked with goods you did not produce. You will draw water from cisterns you did not dig, and you will eat from vineyards and olive trees you did not plant. When you have eaten your fill in this land, be careful not to forget the Lord, who rescued you from slavery in the land of Egypt. Deuteronomy‬ ‭6‬:‭10‬-‭12‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Just before this promise passage in Deuteronomy, God declared the “Hear O Israel” or Shema – the listen command that is still spoken by millions of Jewish people today. God follows it up with announcing the fulfillment of a very long promise made to the Jewish patriarchs, Abram, Isaac & Jacob. That is 400 to 430 years from promise to fulfillment! In modern times, we have absolutely no concept of a time-span like that. It is currently November 4, 2024 (yes! the day before the big election between Donald Trump & Kamala Harris). America is only 248 years old! Most of us barely know our own country’s history let alone remember any promises that God may have made to someone that long ago.

Israel and God’s chosen people have a really long memory and an even longer story! When you’ve been through the struggles of being a nomadic people for a very long time and God promises their own land, and controlling their own destiny- it’s a very big deal. Oh, what joy must have swelled in the hearts of the people as they heard God’s promise of this new land. God said the land was basically “move in” ready, describing it as cities they didn’t need to build and housing fully stocked with food they did not work and toil over in the fields. The lifeline of water! The sweet delicacies of grapes and multipurpose olive oil. Ah, was it just a dream? No, God says it’s real and coming soon. What the catch? No catch really, just to remember the Lord that rescued them from slavery, delivering them from years of wandering and captivity. “Just remember me!” God says.

Dan and Chip Heath wrote a book back in 2007 called Made to Stick and writes about the idea of the curse of knowledge. The curse of knowledge is a cognitive bias that occurs when a person who has specialized knowledge assumes that others share in that knowledge. Once we know something, and we are familiar and comfortable not just knowing it, but talking about a subject, we begin to assume everyone listening already knows the subject as well. As we speak about it, we sort of take shortcuts instead of taking the time for people unfamiliar with topic to catch up.

The Jewish people and their leaders had lived through a really long and arduous journey. It was such an embedded cultural experience that outsiders could not relate to their story at all. One way the people fought against the curse of knowledge when it came to their children and grandchildren is they told the old stories in totality over and over again. Their family meal times and cultural celebrations were all dedicated to telling the story of who they were and how God rescued them. As modern parents and modern children we struggle to tell, and re-tell, and re-tell the stories of life, of faith and of God’s blessing or divine intervention because we fear sounding old, out-dated and out of touch. Our children may not help when they roll their eyes and say, “oh, here we go again… talking about the old days!” But when we don’t tell the stories and our children bristle at the slow-paced talks around dinners or celebrations, there is much to be lost! It’s more than just “back in my day…” when candy was a nickel and gas was a quarter! It’s stories of unbelievable hardship or overcoming years of cyclical dysfunction or addictions in families. It’s stories of being very poor, but never realizing it. But really the old stories remind us of the power of Christ to redeem and restore a life and be able to leave a legacy for the future. These stories contain opportunities for children or grandchildren to pickup the memory stones of their parents and use them to pave a whole new path to glorify God!

The people in these very old Bible stories, lived a difficult life, heard God’s promises and many were able to experience the fulfillment of those promises within their lifetime. What promises of God are we not talking about, not sharing with the next generation? What promises have we believed and course-corrected our life to be obedient to God REMEMBERING Him in all things? If we do not speak of these things, if we do not tell the stories of God’s grace and miracles, our children and grandchildren may never know why we are so passionate about our faith in Jesus! To quote God, “Repeat them again and again to your children.”

Prayer

Dad,
Oh, that it would not be said of me that I did not tell the amazing stories of your grace and power to change my life! I remember and I give thanks that you did rescue me from slavery, from son, from my stubborn determination to live my life my way. I can never forget what you save me from! With that, give me courage to continue to tell my story and others might know of your mercy. Amen.

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DIVORCE: Permits or puts up with?

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Of course the religious legal department for the Jews would be trying to trap or trick Jesus into saying something they could use against him. The overarching irony is that they did not know who Jesus was, or what his purpose was for being on the planet. Jesus is the messiah, sent by God the Father, fully human and fully God. The religious did not, could not recognize their own boss!

These sects of the seventy (Sanhedrin) had piled up so much grief, pain and spiritual entanglements, it had super-hardened their stoney hearts. They were so bitter towards God that they couldn’t see him standing right in front of them. When they point-blank asked Jesus about divorce, Jesus just asked what Moses said about it in one of the books of the of the law. Moses had a section in Deuteronomy about miscellaneous laws. This particular one is hard for us to even fathom today. It’s found in Deut 24:1, “If a man marries a woman, but she becomes displeasing to him because he finds some indecency in her, he may write her a certificate of divorce, a hand it to her, and send her away from his house.” Of course this rather deeply cultural and communal guideline is in a group of fringe laws that maintain order and integrity for a tribal, desert wandering, community of over million people. This is right alongside a command in the previous chapter, “No man with crushed or severed genitals may enter the assembly of the LORD.” Huh?

Jesus asked the experts to quote Moses so he could hear the summary of what they believed was God’s truth about marriage. To the Pharisees, it was as simple as our “no fault” divorce laws today. The man needs no reason to break a covenant, a social contract, it’s as simple as declaring it and handing his wife a cease and desist letter and it’s done. Jesus wasn’t just correcting their understanding of the law, he was correcting their view of God himself!

Speaking as though he personally knew Moses and Moses’ motives, Jesus says, “He wrote the commandment as a concession.” Moses “permitted” it, he allowed it because of their dried-out, shriveled up hearts! Jesus pressed further, “But do you want to know what God really thinks about divorce?” Jesus takes the lawyers back to the original intent of marriage and the contractual reasoning for why it exists. It is God that instituted the Holy Estate of marriage! It was a template, a model for how male and female humans are to understand the bond, the mystery and the strength of both the physical union and spiritual union of two like but not like individuals. It was a singular, earthbound, permanent contract meant for health, wealth and happiness in producing more humans and learning about true love! A marriage should not be entered into flippantly. It is not easy to build, nor certainly should not be easy to tear apart. It is sacred because it is the foundation of family and a type of the covenant that God makes with us! God will not decide to wake up one day and announce three times, “I am done with you… divorce, divorce, divorce.” Go and find another god, find another lover, for I no longer am pleased with you. I am so thankful He keeps His promises!

Prayer

​Dad,
I find it frustrating that you are so often blamed for things that we get wrong. We have strong wills and strange, wayward wanderings, then we wonder why everything has gone wacky! It is so amazing that there is purpose behind everything you do. Even in ancient laws there was divine reasoning. We look at so many of the Old Testament laws, viewing them through modern lenses and have a difficult time seeing the why behind the what! For me, it’s all about trust and faith that you have always known what you are doing and what is best for humanity and for me. That is where I place my questions and thoughts when I do not understand things. I trust that your will, your wisdom, your way is right, true and just so I can park my doubts under the banner of faith. Amen.

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Holy Flair.

Reading Time: 4 minutes

In this way, Aaron will carry the names of the tribes of Israel on the sacred chestpiece over his heart when he goes into the Holy Place. This will be a continual reminder that he represents the people when he comes before the Lord. Insert the Urim and Thummim into the sacred chestpiece so they will be carried over Aaron’s heart when he goes into the Lord’s presence. In this way, Aaron will always carry over his heart the objects used to determine the Lord’s will for his people whenever he goes in before the Lord. ‭‭Exodus‬ ‭28‬:‭29‬-‭30‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I’ll bet most of us would not think of God as consummate ancient fashion designer, would we? A Pastor friend of ours, Emily, told our church, “God is into timing and details,” Isn’t that the truth!

God gave Moses the buildout specs on the temple as well as the official priest-wear, when they were on duty. Earlier in chapter 28, God told Moses, “Make sacred garments for Aaron that are glorious and beautiful. Instruct all the skilled craftsmen whom I have filled with the spirit of wisdom. Have them make garments for Aaron that will distinguish him as a priest set apart for my service.” Not only for Aaron, but for his sons as well. And God commanded that they use the finest materials available – “give them fine linen cloth, gold thread, and blue, purple, and scarlet thread.” There was extreme detail given to Aaron’s breastplate, the beautifully ornate focal point of his uniform. However, the breastplate wasn’t just for aesthetic design only, no – it was practical as well. “Then, with great skill and care, make a chestpiece to be worn for seeking a decision from God. Make it to match the ephod, using finely woven linen embroidered with gold and with blue, purple, and scarlet thread. Make the chestpiece of a single piece of cloth folded to form a pouch nine inches square. Mount four rows of gemstones on it. The first row will contain a red carnelian, a pale-green peridot, and an emerald. The second row will contain a turquoise, a blue lapis lazuli, and a white moonstone. The third row will contain an orange jacinth, an agate, and a purple amethyst. The fourth row will contain a blue-green beryl, an onyx, and a green jasper. All these stones will be set in gold filigree. Each stone will represent one of the twelve sons of Israel, and the name of that tribe will be engraved on it like a seal.”

The chest pieces’ purpose: seeking a decision from God! In the myriad of detail, God had them place two unique stones and gave them names. God named the onyx gemstones! Urim and Thummim, in Hebrew, Urim means “lights” and Thummim means “perfection.” These objects were used to illuminate God’s perfect will when He was sought for answers.

These were not just Jewish Jibbitz! No one really knows what color the stones were because sadly, they disappeared when Israel went into Babylonian captivity and were never seen again. Modern images show one of them as white, the other black. Since God spoke directly to Moses, he had no need of these stones. From Aaron on through the High Priest’s role, this was a part of the job – discerning God’s will. These gemstones became a serious part of a holy decision making process. They were only sought in dire situations and only in a ceremonial process through the High Priest.

Fast forward to the New Testament. Jesus disciples had to replace Judas who was lost because of his betrayal. Acts 1:26, “Then they cast lots, and Matthias was selected to become an apostle with the other eleven.” Did casting lots replace the ancient decision process on determining the will of God? Possibly. It seems that both lots and the gemstones were used in the Old Testament, Proverbs mentions “lots” as well in 16:33, 18:18.

For today, casting lots or using some priestly technique of using the onyx stones is frowned upon. The best way to make decisions today for the believer is to simply seek and ask the Holy Spirit for help. James says, ask for wisdom. It is far more important to learn how to seek and wait for the guidance from the Holy Spirit than to throw out some stones, dice, sticks or use fortune cookies to determine our plans and next steps in following Jesus. God is not a gimmick, and the Holy Spirit is not a scratcher!

Prayer

​Dad,
I know that seeking, waiting and listening is not a perfect process. It feels fraught with a lot of selfishness, self-reflection and even self-doubt. Yet, this is what you’ve asked to do – ask, seek and knock! After learning your ways, it does become a little easier to ferret out my own motives, and begin to see your desires. It’s strange to reach a conclusion with a sense that the decision often goes against, or at least bristles my own will. I have made plenty of decisions against my own will, only to yield to your will. I guess that’s the point, right? However, I know that even when I do not choose your will or have made awful mistakes in big life decisions, your grace is sufficient to catch me, rescue me and get me back on the right path. Thank you for freedom to choose your will, your ways and your plans for my life. I do not take any of this for granted. Amen.

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Tension between justice and mercy.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Jesus went into the synagogue again and noticed a man with a deformed hand. Since it was the Sabbath, Jesus’ enemies watched him closely. If he healed the man’s hand, they planned to accuse him of working on the Sabbath. Jesus said to the man with the deformed hand, “Come and stand in front of everyone.” Then he turned to his critics and asked, “Does the law permit good deeds on the Sabbath, or is it a day for doing evil? Is this a day to save life or to destroy it?” But they wouldn’t answer him. He looked around at them angrily and was deeply saddened by their hard hearts. Then he said to the man, “Hold out your hand.” So the man held out his hand, and it was restored! At once the Pharisees went away and met with the supporters of Herod to plot how to kill Jesus. Mark‬ ‭3‬:‭1‬-‭6‬ ‭NLT‬‬

I have written about the struggles with Jesus and the religious leaders before in other posts. The Jewish leaders, over centuries of silence from God, just continued to add layers of laws to God’s 10 and the additional societal/health codes God commanded the Israelites to live by to keep them safe and prosperous.

The Sabbath seemed to be one of the favorite laws to drill down on in a policy/procedure kind of way. Chabad.org list three categories: Basic Rules, Muktzeh Rules (forbidden objects to move), and Carrying Rules. There’s even a handy little chart for their 39 Melachos list – https://bit.ly/melachos. These and many others, became more than just impossible to fulfill, but they missed or drifted from God’s intent. God intended that His people rest! God still intends for us to rest.

The clash became a serious religious offense in Jesus’ day. And in the perfectionistic pursuit of the keeping their interpretation of God’s Law, they chose policy over personhood. Jesus made it abundantly clear about God’s intent – Sabbath was made for man, not man for the Sabbath. The Sabbath serves the need for rest, but in that rest, humans were never to be held to serving that law. In the process of finding more legal minutiae, they lost the heart of God and to some degree, the heart of the Law. Namely mercy.

The religious system became so litigious, so loophole-crazy that it only served to pile on MORE work instead of relieving it! The result; harsh treatment for everyone, especially the poor, sick and needy. Isn’t that the way it goes? The deeper the detail of additional laws and the responsibility of keeping them, the more the socioeconomic/sociopolitical the whole system becomes. The rich either pay their way out or find a loophole around the law itself! The poor do not have the resources, time or ability to create their own loophole so they just continue to be lawbreakers.

Jesus cut right through all the ridiculous, add-ons of the original law – GET REST, and healed the suffering man with a withered hand! And remember, Jesus did not violate the Sabbath Law at any point! He only irritated the religious police/lawyers who were committed to bust lawbreakers with no thought to God’s intent, and no longer able to access the mercy of God. You can hear the religious leader’s defense, “I don’t make the laws, I only keep them!” Sound familiar?

As humans, we still do the same thing that the Pharisees did. We look for breaches in the law, try to fix it with policy-patches and then feel justified in arresting or fining the lawbreaker. The tragedy is that these men, who supposedly worked for God, knew nothing about their boss’s true nature and intent. And they lived a life without mercy. Justice and mercy will always be in tension and God is the only one who can truly have both!

Prayer

Dad,
Where would I be without your mercy? I would collapse under the weight of my own sin, my own deterministic decisions. I deserve the consequences of my behaviors, yet you have provided the way of forgiveness and erased my debt. How can I not, in turn, see others through eyes of mercy, and forgive them as well? Thank you for a fresh deposit of your mercy each morning. Amen.

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Picking your own perfection.

Reading Time: 4 minutes

One Sabbath day as Jesus was walking through some grainfields, his disciples began breaking off heads of grain to eat. But the Pharisees said to Jesus, “Look, why are they breaking the law by harvesting grain on the Sabbath?” Jesus said to them, “Haven’t you ever read in the Scriptures what David did when he and his companions were hungry? He went into the house of God (during the days when Abiathar was high priest) and broke the law by eating the sacred loaves of bread that only the priests are allowed to eat. He also gave some to his companions.” Then Jesus said to them, “The Sabbath was made to meet the needs of people, and not people to meet the requirements of the Sabbath. So the Son of Man is Lord, even over the Sabbath!” ‭‭Mark‬ ‭2‬:‭23‬-‭28‬ ‭NLT‬‬

It would be interesting to have a list of the stories where Jesus tangled with the Pharisees and religious leaders specifically over breaking the Old Testament Laws of God.

Way back before God gave Israel the Ten Commandments, God instructed Moses to appoint 70 elders. God told Moses, these guys were specifically given to “bear the burden of the people,” you know, the needs, questions and constant complaints that people bring to leaders. And, God promised to take some of the Spirit on Moses and give it to these elders, kind of a Spirit-share program (‭‭Numbers‬ ‭11‬:‭16‬-‭17‬). Fast forward all the way to the New Testament, where we find those 70 elders then made up what was called the Sanhedrin. I’m not sure the promised “Spirit-shared” part came with this group throughout history. Combine this with the fact that after Israel returned from Captivity, the spiritual leadership (elders and priests) had seriously fallen apart because of years of idolatry, abuse of kingly appointed power and a general deterioration of true spiritual living. Even the Prophets would cease to exist.

Through Ezra the Scribe, a school for scribes was established. This from Chabad.org, “Ezra was born in Babylon, like many of the other great leaders, patriots and sages which the Jewish community in exile had produced. By profession he was a scribe; he used to write scrolls of the Torah, which he knew so well. Ezra was also a priest, a member of the priestly family of Aaron.” The construct of these socio-spiritual-political leaders would form the basis of the New Testament leadership that had many confrontational episodes with Jesus.

But policing the law would be more difficult than anyone would imagine. The “law” had exponentially expanded well beyond anyone’s capacity to keep it. It went from 10 Laws to 613 rules concerning the details of how to behave towards God and others. The 613 are basically rules on what to do when things go right, but also when they go wrong – 248 Positive Commandments (do’s) and 365 Negative Commandments (do not’s). But wait, there’s MORE! To make sure they followed every possible exception to the rules, they ended up with thousands of rules to legislate the original rules. There are even hundreds of “fence laws,” called “Eruv,” all dictating how to “legally” break the Sabbath!

Suffice it to say, managing these rules upon rules took up a lot of time and resources. The sad part is that by the time of Jesus, these rules had become so complicated they clouded the original intent of God’s plan. The average person just gave up trying to figure out how to please God. In fact, there was no real way to keep all the laws, therefore, no one could make God happy!

Because Jesus had a growing number of people talking about him and following him when he and his disciples came into town, the religious police/leaders felt it was their duty to confront him on his not-so-orthodox approach to their interpretation of the law. They had people watching and waiting for him, so the religious authorities could catch him in the act.

Of course there were plenty of opportunities! The Sabbath was the lightning rod of sacred confrontations. The Sabbath would be the low-hanging fruit because it would take place weekly and it was very noticeable if individuals were not keeping the expansive interpretation of the original Exodus 20:8, “Remember to observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy.” Modern orthodox Jews even consider switching on or off an electric light a violation of the Sabbath because it “kindles or extinguishes a fire.”

Jesus loved breaking the additional human traditions because it allowed him to speak to the nonsense of our constant, nonsensical need to add to God’s law, thus proving our holiness or worthiness. FYI, Jesus was technically NOT breaking the Sabbath law because there is a huge difference between “harvesting,” grain – ie: WORK and “picking” food for a snack.

I wonder how much “church hurt” has been caused by people extending and adding to God’s intent for good, healthy behaviors into something restrictive and legalistic? Just think about all the hat, hair, pants and tattoo conversations! As long as I have a solid list of “do’s and don’ts,” I can depend on them instead of the righteousness that can only come through believing and trusting in Christ’s perfection for me.

Prayer

Dad,
I don’t know how folks have time to observe or monitor everyone else’s “supposed” sins, when we have so many of our own! I can barely keep up with my own shortcomings and failures – let alone track someone else’s. Help us God! Help me to not just think more like Jesus, but behave like him towards others. I have no desire to be the religious police, shaking down other’s sins! Let your grace and mercy continue to push against my tendencies to judge others. And, thank you for your perfection when you see me through the righteousness of Jesus.

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God Math – 10 to 1.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Dear children, I will be with you only a little longer. And as I told the Jewish leaders, you will search for me, but you can’t come where I am going. So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples. ‭‭John‬ ‭13‬:‭33‬-‭35‬ ‭NLT‬‬

John is the only apostle/journalist to write about Jesus’s foot-washing experience. Jesus, knowing the Father had given him authority over everything, grabbed a towel and started washing feet? Wow, such a powerful moment!

Peter complained about how awkward, no… backwards, this was. Jesus then tells him about the master model, when the teacher sets the expectation of how things are done, you do it. Jesus teaches his learners one more illustration – it’s God Math. Jesus told them, “I am giving you a new commandment.” Can Jesus add or subtract anything from God’s commandments?

When Jesus points out the ONE, he’s boiling down, simplifying and communicating what God asks of us. The 10 commandments were the law. Jesus, earlier on, talked about getting down to 2 commandments, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” And, “Love your neighbor as yourself.” Jesus even told them, “All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.” (Matthew 22:37-40). Ten laws simplified into two. Now Jesus does it again, ten to two to one. “Love one another. As I have loved you” (John 13:34). Many of the New Testament letters to the churches continue to quote Jesus words – 1 John 3:23; 1 Thessalonians 4:9; 1 Peter 1:22; 2 Thessalonians 1:3; Galatians 6:2; 2 Peter 1:7.

Yet, the new isn’t a replacement of the old ten commands, or even the two commands (love God, love others). This new simple and easy to understand command doesn’t do away with the law or our obligations to God and each other. No, it’s new in terms of the best way to go about fulfilling the ten or the two – it’s new and improved, not new to substitute.

When we think of the best way to love others. When we think about how to resist judging others, thinking we are far better or superior in our faith. When we think about how much patience, kindness and mercy we will need to go the full measure of love towards someone. We should think about how God has done so to us, and in us.

God loved me so much that he forgives. God is extremely patient and merciful – time and time again. That’s exactly how we should love others! When I realize that I get frustrated when folks ignore my attempts to love them, keep failing my expectations or outright betray my love – my first thoughts could be. “Oh yeah, I’ve done that to God!” Yet, God still comes after me, forgives me. Loving others as God has loved me fulfills the law of Christ!

Prayer

Dad,
I can easily see how this works when I get frustrated or even judgey with others. I just need to remind myself of how I WAS or how I AM in my relationship with you. It’s easy to just admit, “I’m not perfect.” It’s much harder to remind myself that others aren’t either. If I can receive grace for myself, I should certainly extend it to others! Thank you for the simple way to help me love you and love others by just following your example.

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Change Orientation.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

Once when John’s disciples and the Pharisees were fasting, some people came to Jesus and asked, “Why don’t your disciples fast like John’s disciples and the Pharisees do? Mark‬ ‭2‬:‭18‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Mark records an interesting conversation with Jesus that seemed to start with an amazing spiritual discipline, like fasting and end with a couple of object lessons about change. First of all, the NLT (New Living Translation) makes it sound like the disciples of John and of the Pharisees are using the old avoidance phrase, “some people” say. The original language is not so loose. In the Greek, it’s just “they came.” Pastor’s hate these kind of scenarios when “some people” say… who is “some people” we ask?

Jesus answers the thinly veiled question, but then goes for the motivation behind the question. Who does this? How does Jesus do this? Are there always questions behind the question? Jesus then switches to two object lessons about mixing old with new. It never works!

Jesus gives a quick, two-verse illustration, about patches and wineskins. Don’t both object lessons serve the point that old and new cannot exist in the same space? And isn’t it also clear that the old will not allow the new to coexist, but in fact will destroy both? Is this about fasting at all? It seems that Jesus is having a completely different conversation with these disciples.

They aren’t really asking about fasting and Jesus doesn’t really want to talk about fasting, in this context, either. They are both talking about change. Jesus knows that massive change is coming and he also knows that “some folks” are not comfortable with it. Jesus is, in fact, introducing a whole new way of doing everything. He knows that the fulfillment of the Law and everything under the Law will look completely different under a new freedom, and a new perspective on grace and mercy. The entire Old Testament system will go through cataclysmic change now that God has become flesh and that God will fulfill his promises to redeem humanity!

Christianity is not a patchwork, nor an old-wine way of life. Christ did not come to patch up the Law to keep it limping along, forever failing to change our hearts. He also did not come to allow a flat, fervent-less wine to try to express the exuberant joy of walking with God. The Law was a temporary stop-gap, a burden! When we grab the ethos, thinking or application of the Old Testament Law into the new and better experience of Christ’s efficacy and efficiency for our salvation, we are trying to patch God’s plan. When we keep trying to introduce the effervescent, actively expanding grace and joy of new life into the forms and confines of the Old Covenant, it will blow up!

Jesus couldn’t wait to introduce the fresh air of living by the Spirit but folks wanted to keep living in the caves of the law, breathing staleness of dead air! No wonder people would give up everything to follow Him! Jesus brings life to the fullest, no longer dimmed or dinged by our sin! Who doesn’t want that? I’ll tell you who. Folks who desire the guardrails of the Law, because a life in the Spirit feels like a lack of control. And it is. It’s a surrendering of faith to the control of the Spirit. I’ll take the new clothes of Christ and the bubbly joy of the new wine thank you!

Prayer

Dad,
I love your Law as instruction and to know you better. But I also love living by Your Spirit! The fresh, exhilarating wind of hope, mercy and grace is intoxicating. I will gladly give up control of my will to accomplish Yours. I will gladly walk in the Spirit, rather than my own flesh. Getting my way not only brings death it means crushing disappointment! It’s Your way now. Thank you for freedom to do what is right, and not just anything I want to do.

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Concerning God’s first house.

Reading Time: 2 minutes

“It was in midspring, in the month of Ziv, during the fourth year of Solomon’s reign, that he began to construct the Temple of the Lord. This was 480 years after the people of Israel were rescued from their slavery in the land of Egypt.” 1 Kings‬ ‭6‬:‭1‬ ‭NLT‬‬

The Bible gives specific dates about when construction began on the Temple – 480 years after leaving Egypt. There are some fascinating details in this chapter about the building of the temple. First of all, remember, God told David, He didn’t really need a permanent place to visit (1 Chronicles 17:5) Andy Stanley says, “God is a mobile God!” I love that. God also told David, that Solomon would build the temple, but He would only continue to visit as long as the people obeyed His commands (2 Chronicles 7:19-20).

The temple was massively ginormous. It was constructed in near silence vs. 7. And, it was elaborately gorgeous! The chapter ends telling us the construction took seven years! Wow – what an extraordinary achievement in ancient times. But for all the beauty in architecture and decor, in all the detail of perfection in the design and flow of what would take place in God’s first house – it was completely eclipsed by one thing and only one thing. God’s presence! Solomon dedicated the temple in 1 Kings chapter 8 by bringing the Ark of the Covenant in and invoking an amazing prayer of dedication over the building.

God answers by reminding Solomon and the people of His promise. If they are obedient, one of David’s sons will always rule on the throne. If they disobey the commands of God, He will uproot Israel and reject the temple (1 Kings 9:6-7). Solomon and the people of Israel DID NOT keep their promises, disregarding and disobeying God’s laws. But God kept His promise, eventually placing an everlasting King on the throne – Jesus Christ, the Messiah! God also moved His presence, with all of His laws, ways, decrees and desires into a permanent place – into the hearts of those who believe and follow Jesus as Lord.

Prayer

​Dad,
We are now your dwelling place! You have come and written your laws on our hearts, instead of inscribing them on stone. We are now the temple, yet you are still mobile because we are living and moving around, carrying the your Spirit within us. Thank you for abiding in hearts of flesh. Thank you for dwelling among us from within. Because of Jesus, you have not only kept your promise, you have made it possible for us to keep our promises through Christ’s own righteousness. Amen.

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Elegant clarity of God’s Law.

Reading Time: 3 minutes

The instructions of the Lord are perfect, reviving the soul. The decrees of the Lord are trustworthy, making wise the simple. The commandments of the Lord are right, bringing joy to the heart. The commands of the Lord are clear, giving insight for living. Reverence for the Lord is pure, lasting forever. The laws of the Lord are true; each one is fair. They are more desirable than gold, even the finest gold. They are sweeter than honey, even honey dripping from the comb. ‭‭Psalms‬ ‭19‬:‭7‬-‭10‬ ‭NLT‬‬

King David, one of the favorite patriarchs and most beloved leaders of Israel writes this extraordinary Psalm. David’s personal life was filled with drama, trauma, failures and beauty. David was a prolific songwriter and psalmist. His humble beginnings, heroic acts, desperate evasions running from Saul, rise to power, despicable behavior as the highest authority in the land and highly dysfunctional household all make for an honest story to tell in the book of Psalms.

This psalm was inserted at the end of David’s life, so there is no real way to determine when it was written. Maybe when David was young and hungry for nothing but God’s presence. Or, maybe looking back at God’s faithfulness, even though David’s life may appear to be a disaster. Either way, this psalm captures the elegant clarity and resilience of God’s Law.

These words like perfect, trustworthy, joyous, clear, pure, true and fair are abundantly descriptive of God Himself and reflected in God’s Law. These words immediately make me feel defensive of God when He is wrongly blamed for being evil, blind, slow, unjust or unmerciful! Since God is perfect, it surprises me that we, as warped, broken human beings can’t see that maybe, just maybe, all the atrocities we blame God for are actually not from Him at all. I know that causes us to scream, then “why does God allow evil to prevail?”

Let me ask another question that is much more complex, “why does God let us choose anything?” “Why does God give us free will?” For God to rid the world of evil, wouldn’t that also mean ridding the world of YOU, or ME… and our choices! We are really addicted, obsessed and fixated on our own free will. We love our choices to do what we want, when we want and do not want anyone telling us differently. Anyone ever think that evil and awful atrocities have something to do with US and not God? We are quick to say, “they shouldn’t be allowed to __.” But we think twice about someone stopping us from doing what we want. Choices! We have them and we do whatever like. Why doesn’t God just stop the really bad things from happening? Hmmm, what would those “really bad” things be? Murder? Mayhem? War? Infanticide? Genocide? Cruelty? Racism? The list goes on.

At some point we should see the problem with eliminating some choices, but allowing others. And that’s just with humanity alone. This doesn’t even account for a real, living entity called Satan, the rebellious angel that hates humans and wants to destroy every single one of us! What about that? What about Satan’s free choices? Should he be allowed to do whatever he wants?

Back to God’s law and His perfection. Looking at God’s way, His rules, my hope is that we can see that God is good and His love for us is good as well. When I can’t see the “why” behind a tragedy, a diagnosis, or an atrocity – I can still trust that God is good and absolutely knows the person, circumstances and struggles behind each situation. God is eternal, and wise – our perspective is so limited and our understanding of all things is bound by those limitations. My trust in Him is resolute, no matter what I see or feel.

Prayer

​Dad,
I am so limited on what I know, see and feel. My trust in you, however, secure. I have seen your work and will among us for much of my life and I am convinced that you are exactly what this broken king David said you are – perfect. And your law, rules and ways are perfect as well. Thank you for continued mercy and patience with me and all of us who wait for sin to be no more and justice to prevail over all things.

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Obedience out of love or fear?

Reading Time: 4 minutes

So Moses returned from the mountain and called together the elders of the people and told them everything the Lord had commanded him. And all the people responded together, “We will do everything the Lord has commanded.” So Moses brought the people’s answer back to the Lord. Then the Lord said to Moses, “I will come to you in a thick cloud, Moses, so the people themselves can hear me when I speak with you. Then they will always trust you.” Moses told the Lord what the people had said. Exodus‬ ‭19‬:‭7‬-‭9‬ ‭NLT‬‬

These Exodus passages are a great place to think about our human nature, especially when it comes to doing what is right or wrong – obedience to the law or rules for living or doing whatever we please.

Let’s face the facts, the nation of Israel, the chosen people of God, had faced the most intense, supernatural occurrences over several weeks, maybe months, known as the plagues. But, whether the ten plagues lasted forty days or three months, we can be guaranteed that the entire group of Egyptians and Jews went through a living nightmare of horrors. If that wasn’t enough, the mind-blowing phenomenon of a narrow escape across the Red Sea, then a pillar of fire by night and a massive cloud by day led the nation to this holy place called Mount Sinai! It could be said that it was either a glorious or traumatizing set of events. And Moses was at the center of all of it – God’s chosen stutterer, turned super leader in a very brief time.

When Moses came down from the holy mountain and told the people what God had spoken to him, it’s not surprising that they responded together, “we will do everything the Lord has commanded.” They were probably still terrified of Moses’ God. The Bible is very open about the fact that the people DID NOT obey… at least for long. Let’s set aside the fact that God told Moses, the visual, audible show of a cloud with booming noises coming out of it was for a specific reason – so the people would TRUST Moses. Ok, great. But these passages help me ask the question, did the people obey out of fear or love? And, how effective is obedience out of fear verses obedience out of love? You could argue the point that Israel loved God and loved pleasing God. But I offer this, I believe they were re-establishing a relationship with God that had been abandoned since Jacob and his son Joseph led the nation. Heaven had been silent for several hundred years! I don’t think they knew God all that well.

Is obedience out of fear effective? Of course it is! Is obedience out of fear expedient? Yeah, it works pretty quick. Just watch what happens when a Highway Patrol vehicle pulls onto the highway. The speed limit instant becomes every driver’s best friend. But does obedience through fear engage an enduring change of both behavior and heart? Is it not true that love takes longer, but is far more successful for a lifetime of obedience? Ask any Dad, “would you rather your children fear you or love you?” Ah, that’s tricky isn’t it? Fearing your Father for the right reasons, like the ultimate goals of safety, security and delayed success for your future – is a good fear! Ask a Dad if they “would rather their children respect them or love them?” Good Dads, great Dads want BOTH. Why? It’s the best outcome for the child’s sake!

I am not advocating that fear has no place in our obedience to God, it’s just that our relationship must mature to a point where love becomes the primary motivation to do what is right. That’s why God says he prefers obedience over sacrifice. Sacrifice can be faked, obedience can’t. Even, if one doesn’t obey for the right reason, it is still beneficial. Do you know how often I hear my friends express gratitude for their strict parents? Parents that held the line, set the boundaries and corrected their children when they disobeyed. They held those boundaries until the child became an adult – understanding the necessity for rules and even fear-based compliance. I don’t know if you’ve noticed that children and/or youth make some really stupid, even life-threatening mistakes. Some of these “mistakes” have horrible, life-altering consequences – that are permanent.

Shouldn’t maturity and a growth in our understanding of God, drive us to be obedient more out of love than fear? In surrendering to the discipline, the correction of the Holy Spirit, I am yielding – more out of love for God these days, and less out of fear.

Prayer

Dad,
It has certainly not been easy to be raised in more or less, a fatherless home environment. I rarely felt safe, rarely felt loved, valued or protected by a good, loving father figure. That lack of discipline made it much harder to do what is right for the right reason. You know my sense of right and wrong was based on getting caught or getting away with something! It was not helpful at all as a young man. But when I was learning to be obedient and even disciplined out of your love it was both amazing and extremely difficult. Thank you for your long, enduring patience with me. Thank you for your grace still today. You are such a good Father to me and I am eternally grateful.